Actress Movita Castaneda Dies: Marlon Brando's Second Wife Dead At 98

Actress Movita Castaneda, mostly known for having married Marlon Brando in 1960, reportedly passed away in Los Angeles last Thursday, at a rehabilitation center while being treated for a neck injury. Born to Mexican parents on a train crossing the border into Nogales, Arizona, Maria Luisa Castaneda grew up in Los Angeles and became famous after appearing in the 1935 classic “Mutiny on the Bounty,” starring Clark Gable and Charles Laughton. Her daughter, Rebecca Brando Kotlizky and son, Miko Castaneda Brando (reportedly Michael Jackson's lifelong friend and confidant), four grandchildren and her 102-year-old sister, Petra, survive Castaneda.

Her most outstanding role was in “Mutiny on the Bounty,” which was remade in 1962 with Marlon Brando as the mutiny’s leader, Fletcher Christian. The movie remake also marked the beginning of their marriage downfall, as Brando started an off-screen love affair with 19-year-old Tarita Teri’ipaia, who played his Tahitian lover in the film. After Castaneda and Brando split up, he got married to his costar, making Teri’ipaia his third wife.

Castaneda is assumed to have been 98 years old at the time of her death but her actual date of birth varies in different accounts. According to her family, it was April 12, 1916, but some sources list it as 1921.